To Sleep for an Eternity
by Yuzuru's-Angel
Summary: Hisao meets and befriends two girls from his class: Suzu, a narcoleptic who often falls asleep, and Natsume, a girl who suffers from arthritis and has trouble seeing with her right eye. He meets several others and learns of their stories, and, when problems arise for the two girls, he learns valuable lessons in life and love. A little more info inside.
1. In The Night

**Katawa Shoujo**

**To Sleep for an Eternity**

_**Hello everyone! Here's my second Katawa Shoujo fanfic; Hope you enjoy!**_

_**Summary: Hisao befriends two girls from his class: Natsume, a girl who suffers from arthritis and whose right eye is nearly blind, and Suzu, a narcoleptic who falls asleep periodically. Together, he must help these two girls through their ups and downs, and learn some things about himself along the way...**_

_**The names of the girls are taken from a picture with what I assume are fan names for the unknown people in the classroom. Natsume is the girl in the top-left corner of the class, while Suzu is the one at the front with her head on her arms.**_

_**Official Fanfic Poster: (ht)(tp:/)i46.(tinypic).com(/)(awyf46.)(jpg) . Remove the ()s from the url!**_

_**Please Read, REVIEW, and Enjoy!~**_

* * *

**Chapter One: In the Night**

The bell chimed, thus ending Hisao's third school-day at Yamaku.

As he stood and put his textbook into his bag, Misha popped up and said to him, "Hey Hicchan! You should come and help us with some student council work!~"

She grinned at him, and Shizune was looking at him intently as well. _That must be what they were signing about earlier, _he thought with a sigh.

"I'm not really feeling up to it today, sorry. I need to go by the He gave them a small wave and quickly left the scene as Misha lifted a finger and was about to speak.

Once in the hallway, Hisao quickly made his way towards the dorms. When he arrived there, he let out a sigh of relief, knowing he was in the clear.

_It's not that I don't like them, _he thought as he placed his bag down beside his bed, _I'm just not up for doing any work right now. _Hisao took off his shoes and jumped onto his bed, closing his eyes and allowing himself to wind down.

He looked over at his bag, which seemed to have progressively grown bigger with homework and other things since the first day. _I figured they wouldn't mind me being slow with my work at first, but I guess it might make them worry about me or something..._

With a sigh, Hisao got out of his bed and sat at his desk, which was bare, except for a small lamp and a book he had checked out. He flipped the lamp on and placed some of his work in front of him.

After a while passed, Hisao leaned back in his chair and rubbed his eyes. Looking back at his window, he realized that the sun had already gone down, and it was likely getting late.

Putting his pen down, Hisao stood and gave a much-needed stretch. _Now I can at least say I did something, _he thought. Before he could move over to his bed though, he heard a noise from outside.

Hisao made his way over to his window and looked out through the blinds. It was dark, but there was a dim light on the side of the building that made him able to see what had made the noise...

There was somebody lying there on the ground, face-down. _What is she doing out there?_ Worried, Hisao quickly slipped on his shoes and left his room, making sure to close the door softly behind him.

Hisao remembered Kenji telling him at one point that there's a curfew for students. Looking at his watch, he noticed that curfew was about an hour ago. _How did she even manage to walk around the school without getting caught?_

As he neared the entrance to the male dorm, he could hear someone scuffling around. Peering around the corner and saw a teacher sitting there, book in hand. _Monitoring the hall, _he thought, wondering what to do. _I guess I have a good reason if someone might be hurt._

Hisao stepped out and started to walk towards the teacher...Who looked at his watch and stood, closing his book and leaving. For a moment, Hisao was confused as to what happened. _I guess that makes this easier, _he thought, making his way out of the dorms cautiously.

_I know she was around here somewhere, _he thought as he found his way over to where the girl had been . However, there was nobody there. _Where did she-_

Suddenly, a noise came from the nearby bushes, making Hisao jump. The girl he had seen before emerged, blinking at him.

"Who are you?" The girl brushed her skirt off and stepped closer.

Hisao placed a hand on his chest and let his heart settle a bit before answering. "U-Uh, I'm Hisao Nakai...I saw you out here, and I thought something was wrong," he said.

The girl blinked at him and said nothing. Uncomfortable under her gaze, Hisao said, "But I guess you're alright, so..." He gave a nervous smile and turned to walk away, but stopped as the girl reached out and touched his shoulder.

"Can you take a walk with me, Hisao?" He looked over at the girl, who still had a blank expression on her face.

_This wouldn't look right if we were caught, _Hisao thought for a moment, _but I guess I need the exercise. _"Sure," he answered. "What's your name?"

"Suzu Suzuki," the girl answered, stepping forward and outstretching her hand to him. Hisao shook it and got his first glimpse of Suzu's appearance.

She had teal-colored hair that was slightly unkempt. Her uniform seemed the same as all of the other girls he had seen, except that it seemed kind of lazily done, as if she got dressed while groggy from sleep.

"If you're done staring, let's walk," Suzu said, letting go of Hisao's hand, who blushed a little, realizing that he had been looking at her for too long.

The two walked side-by-side along the school grounds. To Hisao's surprise, there were no teachers or cameras, at least that he could see. _I might have taken the Nurse's words too seriously, _he thought, shaking his head.

"What are you here for?" The question took Hisao by surprise, and he looked at Suzu to see if she was serious. She looked back at him with a blank expression, which told him that she probably just asked it for no apparent reason.

"Uh, well, I..." _I haven't told anyone...After what I've seen, I don't think it really compares._ Hisao thought for a moment about how he should tell her, but Suzu shook her head and spoke instead.

"I'm a Narcoleptic," Suzu said. Looking over a Hisao, she continued after seeing his clueless expression, "So I fall asleep a lot. To be honest, I'd rather have insomnia."

"Oh, is that why I saw you on the ground earlier?" Suzu nodded.

"That didn't feel too good," she commented, feeling her nose as if to emphasize her point, "But I'm used to it. I actually passed out into the bushes before you came too.

_She fell asleep again that fast? That doesn't sound too good, _Hisao thought. "Isn't it dangerous to be walking out here alone though?"

Suzu nodded. "I never get to get much fresh air though, since I sleep so much," she explained, "So every day at midnight, when the monitors switch shifts, I go out."

"Oh, I see. But why not get someone to go with you?" Suzu gave Hisao a confused look.

"You just met me, why are you so worried?" Her question threw him off, and he opened his mouth to defend himself, but couldn't think of anything.

"Uh, I mean, it's just natural to worry for someone," he said. Suzu shrugged.

"I guess so. I just like being alone a lot," she told him. Suzu stopped in her tracks, and pointed over to a nearby bench. "Shall we sit?"

"Sure," Hisao said, following her over to it. He hadn't really been paying attention to where they were walking. They had ended up in the front courtyard of the school, which wasn't very lit up like everywhere else.

For a minute, the two of them sat there in silence. Hisao glanced over at Suzu, who was looking up at the sky. "The darkness is really soothing," she said softly, as if speaking it to herself.

Hisao looked up at the sky like she was and said, "Yeah, I think so too..." After a moment, Hisao thought, _If she can be open about it, then I guess... _"I have a heart condition." Suzu turned her head to him, slightly surprised by his outburst. "It's Cardiac Arrhythmia, or something like that. I have to make sure and monitor my heart-rate, and there's a lot of medicine involved too."

Suzu blinked at him. "Bummer," she said. Hisao looked at her, and saw that she didn't really seem phased by what she had heard. He couldn't' help but grin. _Well...maybe I'm over-thinking it too much, _he thought. _It feels good to tell someone._

"I...feel like it's not that bad though, like I don't really-" Hisao was interrupted when Suzu suddenly laid her head on his shoulder. He looked down at her and saw that her breathing had become shallow.

_She fell asleep... _Hisao blushed a bit, looking down at her sleeping figure. _I can't really leave with her like this...Hopefully she'll wake up soon._

Much to Hisao's dismay, it was an hour before Suzu awoke. By then, he was already closing his eyes, about to fall asleep himself.

"Sorry," Suzu told him, rubbing her eyes then looking around, blinking. "I guess we should go back."

Hisao glanced at his watch. It was almost two o'clock. "Yeah, I need a little sleep," he said, giving a big stretch as he stood, followed by a yawn. "I guess I'll see you later," he said to Suzu a she stood as well.

"Thank you for keeping me company," she told him, dipping her head slightly before turning and starting to walk away.

_Maybe my time will be more interesting than I thought._ Hisao watched Suzu until she disappeared, then turned and made his way back to the dorm.

* * *

The morning came quickly, and Hisao sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. Glancing at his window, he noticed that it seemed brighter outside than normal.

_Don't tell me... _Hisao grabbed his watch from the desk and looked at it. Class was about to start.

Hopping out of bed, Hisao scurried to get dressed and ready. _I'm sure being late isn't too bad at this school, but who knows what they might think for someone with a heart condition..._

It only took a few minutes to get into his uniform, then he quickly went through his hair once to make it look less bed-ridden and made his way out the door.

Luckily, the hallways were almost completely empty, making it easy to quickly head for class. When Hisao was only a hallway away from class though, he rounded a corner and suddenly ran into somebody. They fell over and shrieked, while Hisao staggered back and maintained his balance.

"Sorry!" Hisao was still in a rush, but he offered a hand to the girl. She reached up and took it, and, as he helped her up, he realized that her hand felt...wrong.

When he glanced at it, he noticed that the knuckles of her middle and ring finger seemed to be inflamed slightly, making the fingers look crooked and unnatural.

Realizing that he was staring, Hisao let go of the girl's hand. "S-Sorry..."

"It's...okay." The girl stood up straight and put both of her hands behind her. Hisao noticed that her right eye was a light-gray color, while the other was brown. _From what I know, I'm guessing she's blind or mostly blind in that eye, so I can't blame her for bumping into me._

"I was trying to rush to class...Guess I should go a little slower," he said, rubbing the back of my head.

"I'm late too...I couldn't sleep last night so it was hard for me to wake up," the girl told him. "You're Hisao aren't you? I'm in your class."

Hisao raised an eyebrow, trying to think of who the girl was. "Oh, I think I remember seeing you in the back," he said as he remembered.

The girl nodded. "I'm Natsume Kisaki. Um, I guess you're not used to all of this, are you?"

Hisao couldn't help but show his surprise at that comment. _She completely read my mind. _"Y-Yeah. I'm sorry for staring, I shouldn't have..."

Natsume shook her head. "It's fine, I'm used to it," she said. For a moment, there was silence, which quickly became awkward.

"I guess we should head to class," Hisao said, cutting through the quiet. Natsume nodded, and they both headed towards the classroom.

When they arrived at the classroom, they were greeted with stares from their classmates, just like Hisao had expected. Natsume didn't make eye-contact with Mutou as she stepped in, so Hisao did the same...But Mutou ended up stopping him.

"Why were you late, Nakai?" He didn't sound angry nor worried. It sounded more like he was saying it because that's what teachers were supposed to do.

"I...slept in," Hisao admitted. There was no point in lying.

Mutou nodded. "Alright, go take your seat."

Dipping his head, Hisao made his way over to his seat. When he did, something caught his eye, and he stopped...

Sitting at the front desk, adjacent to Mutou's desk, was Suzu, who already appeared to be asleep. _I didn't realize she was in this class too, _Hisao thought. Quickly realizing that he looked odd standing there in the middle of the class, Hisao made his way over to his desk and sat down.

Class went along as usual, though it seemed to drag on more and more to Hisao, who was struggling to stop himself from putting his head down and going to sleep. Finally, the chime for lunch sounded, and Hisao stood, giving a big stretch.

Suzu had also seemingly sprung to life as she suddenly shot up out of her chair and gave a long, drawn out arm stretch. Misha shot up as well and turned to Hisao, but he made sure to speak first. "Hey, I'm going to go eat lunch with someone else today," he told them.

Misha frowned. "But-" She started to speak, but Shizune started to sign something, so she stopped to pay attention. "Okay Shicchan~." Misha's smile returned as she turned back to Hisao. "Well, it's good to hear you're making some friends Hicchan! But don't forget about us, okay~?"

Hisao nodded. "I can hang out with you guys later," Hisao said. _I don't want them to feel like I'm ignoring them...though I'd rather not get pestered about the student council anymore._ He made his way over to Suzu, who looked at him, a tired expression on her face.

"Hey, mind if I eat lunch with you today?" Suzu blinked at the question, as if trying to process it through her mind.

"Sure," she answered, "We usually eat out in the courtyard."

"Oh, the place where we were last night?" Suzu nodded. "Alright...Wait, did you say 'we'?" She nodded again, and looked to the side, where Natsume was standing, lunch in hand.

"Hisao, do you know Suzu?" Natsume tilted her head as she asked the question.

_I hope she didn't hear about last night..._ "Uh, yeah, I met her yesterday," Hisao answered. "And I bumped into Natsume earlier," he told Suzu, who gave a tired nod.

"Well, since we all know each other now, can we go? I'm kinda hungry," Suzu said, her anticipation breaking through her tired voice.

Hisao and Natsume nodded, and the three left the class and headed off for lunch.

**To be continued...**

**Next Chapter – Heart and Bones**

_**A/N: I'm used to writing in First-Person, so please point out anywhere where I might have accidentally put "I did this". Thank you!**_


	2. Heart and Bone

**Chapter Two – Heart and Bone**

The group made their way to the school's front courtyard, sitting at the same bench that Hisao and Suzu had sat at the night before. Hisao had picked up some noodles from the cafeteria on the way, which seemed a little weak in comparison to the girls' well-prepared meals.

"When do you even find the time to make those?" Hisao couldn't help but ask that question as they popped open their bentos to reveal neatly placed rice balls, roasted pork and vegetables.

"My mom sends mine every week," Natsume explained as she seemed to struggle with breaking apart her chopsticks due to the awkward alignment of her fingers.

Seeing this, Suzu nonchalantly reached over and broke them apart for her. As she handed them back, Natsume nodded in thanks and started to work at her food.

"A friend of mine makes me these every day," Suzu said simply as she began to dig into her meal.

"They must be a good friend if they spend time making you lunch every day." Suzu looked over at Hisao, a piece of pork sticking out of her mouth a bit.

"I guess so," she responded, finishing off the piece of pork.

With that, they ate their lunches in silence. Hisao wasn't particularly hungry, so he finished half of his noodles and set them aside. He then looked over at Suzu, who was practically inhaling her food, and Natsume, who was still trying everything in her power to grab the pork with her chopsticks.

Hisao opened his mouth to comment, but Suzu beat him to it. "I told you before that you should try using a fork," Suzu said without looking up from her food.

Natsume sighed. "You're right, but this is good practice for me," she responded. After a few more moments of trying, she gave up and jabbed one of the chopsticks through a piece of pork, using it like one would use a fork.

When they had all finished, the three students stood and started to make their way back to the school building. However, almost as soon as they got moving, Natsume let out a gasp and fell forward, landing on her hands and knees.

"Natsume?" Hisao couldn't help but show a little concern as he knelt beside her. She sat back and held onto her right knee, an obvious expression of pain on her face.

"If your arthritis is acting up, you should go see the nurse," Suzu said, not alarmed at all. I guess this happens often, Hisao thought...

Natsume nodded and started to move forward in an attempt to stand, though she just ended up sitting back again with a look of pain on her face.

"Suzu, could you help me-" Hisao stopped as he noticed Suzu starting to sway, her eyes closing. Don't even think about it! He stood and shook her shoulders once.

Suzu snapped back to life, at least for a second. "I'm sorry, I need to find a place to nap," she said groggily, turning and walking away.

"Hey-" Hisao stopped when he realized it was pointless. Looking around, there was nobody else nearby that could help.

With a sigh, Hisao turned back towards Natsume. "Can you at least stand on your other leg?" Natsume nodded, and Hisao wrapped his left arm around her right, helping her up. She winced in pain as she stood, but it disappeared as she leaned her weight into Hisao and lifted her leg a bit off the ground.

"Alright, just lean on me til we get there," Hisao said as he put an arm around her and Natsume did the same to him.

As they started to make their way over to the Nurse's office, Hisao glanced over at Natsume. Her knee seemed a little out of alignment, which was obviously due to the arthritis he had just learned that she had. It must be rough having to deal with that, he thought, At least I have a some control over my heart condition.

"If you don't mind me asking..." Natsume looked over at Hisao who pretended to just now look her way. "Why are you here?"

"I..." Hisao trailed off for a moment before continuing, "Have a heart condition." Natsume blinked, obviously wanting some details. "It's not really that bad, it comes up when I have to much adrenaline, or something surprises me."

"Oh, I see," Natsume said as Hisao opened the door to the building and allowed her to step in first. "That doesn't sound so bad."

Hisao sighed. "I know. I'm... kind of worried that it pales in comparison to others."

"I understand," Natsume said, "When I first came here, my arthritis only affected by hands, and I didn't think I deserved to be here." Hisao couldn't help but show his surprise at his feelings being shared. "Then it affected my right eye..." Natsume reached up and touched below her eye. "Now I don't feel so bad."

I don't think I'd want my condition to worsen to feel better, Hisao thought. When they finally reached the Nurse's office, Natsume stopped. "It doesn't feel as bad right now," she told him, setting her right leg on the ground and leaning against the wall.

Hisao nodded and reached for the door, but Natsume put a hand onto the door and stopped him. "Hisao...you really shouldn't feel bad. We're all here for one reason or another. As long as we're all different, it's fine," she said.

"I...guess I'll have to get used to it," Hisao said, nodding to her. "Thanks."

With that, he opened the door and helped Natsume step inside. The Nurse was sitting over at the counter, looking at some bottles of pills and scribbling on a notepad,. When they stepped in, he stopped and turned to them, his usual smile coming onto his face. "Oh, Hisao, Natsume. Is something the matter?"

"Just my knee again," Natsume said with a sigh. The Nurse's smile dropped.

"I see. Take a seat over there, and I'll take a look," he told her. Hisao helped Natsume make her way over to one of the beds in the room. Once she sat, the Nurse turned to Hisao, his smile returning. "Mr. Nakai, have you been exercising like I told you to?"

Hisao was about to lie, but he realized there wasn't any point if Emi would tell him otherwise. "Not really."

The Nurse shook his head. "You can't get better if you don't start now," he told him. Turning to Natsume, he said, "If you and Ms. Kisaki are friends, why don't the both of you start a track running routine? The both of you could really use it." He grinned, and Hisao couldn't tell if that was a joke about weight or he was being serious.

"Um, I just haven't gotten around to it," Natsume said. At least I'm not the only one making excuses, Hisao thought with a small smile.

"I'm sure, I'm sure," The Nurse said, rolling his chair over and sitting down, taking a look at Natsume's knee. "It's definitely starting to drift out of alignment again. It's nothing unusual though. Does it hurt more than usual?" She shook her head. "Good. I can send you off with crutches and some Vicodin, for the pain."

Rolling over to the cabinets, he began to rummage through them for a moment. He eventually came out with a bottle pf ills, and he wrote some things down on a clipboard before rejoining them. "Keep these handy, alright? If you feel drowsy, just stay in bed tomorrow. I'll also allow you to skip the rest of the school day today. I'm sure Hisao would happily bring you your classwork," he said, winking at Hisao.

"Thank you," Natsume said as she took the bottle.

Turning to Hisao, the Nurse asked, "Could you get her back to her room? I'll have to send the crutches up to her later."

Hisao nodded and stood, helping Natsume up again. As they began to leave, the Nurse said after them, "Don't forget the track every morning, Hisao!"

* * *

The bell signaling the end of lunch had already chimed by the time they arrived at Natsume's room. Hisao helped open her door and stepped inside.

It was the first time Hisao had been in a girl's dorm-room. It was simple, with tan carpet, a dresser, desk, lamp, bed with pink sheets, and a small closet. "Thank you, Hisao," Natsume told him as he helped her over to her bed.

As she sat, she let out a sigh of relief, stretching out her leg a bit. "Well, I guess I'll bring you our homework later, alright?" Hisao felt a little awkward being in her room, and didn't want anyone to think wrong of it if they walked by.

"Okay...Could you make sure Suzu got to class or not? Knowing her, she could be asleep anywhere," Natsume said.

Hisao nodded and turned, heading out of the room and closing the door behind him.

_I guess it felt good to have opened up a little bit to someone_, Hisao thought with a slight smile as he started to make his way back to class.

* * *

When Hisao entered the classroom, he was greeted with more stares from his classmates, like before. He explained to Mutou about what had happened, and, once again, he simply told Hisao to take his seat. Suzu was also sitting at her desk, dozing off like usual.

Lessons went on normally, and Hisao found himself not really paying much attention. By the time class was over, he had to ask Misha and Shizune about what their homework was, which didn't go quite well.

"Hicchan~! You really need to pay more attention," Misha translated for Shizune, who pushed up on her glasses and gave him a disappointed look.

"Sorry, I just didn't get much sleep," he told them.

"Why not~?" Misha seemed determined to continue asking questions, so Hisao started to place his things into his bag.

"Just busy with homework," he answered, "Guess I let it stack up on me."

Shizune signed a few things, and Misha gave Hisao one of her fake-angry looks. "You really need to get it together Hicchan~!"

"Yeah, I know. I gotta go and give Natsume her homework," he told them, grabbing his bag. "See you tomorrow." Without letting them say anything more, he left the classroom and started to head for the girls' dorm.

Remembering where the room was, Hisao gently knocked on the door. No response. He knocked again, but there was still no response.

"Uh..." a voice came from behind Hisao, making him jump a bit. Turning, he saw a girl who recognized from his class, remembering that she sat in front of Natsume. "What are you doing?"

"I uh, came to give Natsume the homework she missed out on," he explained. Hopefully I'm allowed in the girl's dorm...I have no idea, Hisao thought.

"I saw her leave earlier," the girl told him, "I can give it to her when I hear her come back, if you wish" She tilted her head a bit and gave a small smile, which made Hisao blush slightly.

"S-Sure." Hisao reached into his bag and handed over the pages. "Thanks...You're in my class right? I'm Hisao Nakai."

The girl nodded. "Yes, I remember your name. I'm Misaki Kawana." She extended her hand and Hisao shook it gently. "Have you settled in well?"

"Yeah, I'm still getting used to it," Hisao told her. Misaki brought her hand up and brushed her hair behind her ear in a smooth, delicate movement. As she did this, Hisao took a moment to look at her deep-dark blue hair and eyes that matched it. There was a sort of calming aura about her, and it made Hisao feel relaxed.

"Well, I do hope you find a place here," Misaki said with a smile. "I hope to see you around, Hisao."

"You too," he said. She gave a slight wave, and he returned it before turning and walking away.

* * *

With nothing else to do besides homework, Hisao headed for the library to try and find some books that could help keep his brain going and get him to actually start doing his work.

After browsing through the fiction section, he ended up only finding one. _This will work, _he thought, heading for the counter. However, something caught his eye, and he turned to see none other than Natsume sitting at a table in the reading area, apparently deep into her book.

"Hey," Hisao said as he approached her. She didn't seem at all startled as she looked up at him with groggy eyes.

"Oh, hello Hisao," Natsume said. As if on cue, she yawned and shut her book gently.

"Guess those pills are coming into effect already, aren't they?" Natsume nodded, and Hisao couldn't help but grin at how tired she looked. "I came by your room earlier to give you your homework, but you weren't there. I gave it to Misaki to give you later."

In that moment, Natsume's eyes widened, and she seemed to wake up instantly. "M-Misaki?" There was a dark tone in her voice when she spoke her name, and it took Hisao by surprise.

"Uh...yeah," Hisao said. _That look...Perhaps they don't really get along? But then why would Misaki want to give it to her?..._

_Oh...I guess she might not be getting it after all._

"Do you two not get along?" Hisao didn't want to intrude on anything, but was too intrigued to not ask questions.

Natsume quickly stood out of her chair and grabbed her crutches from nearby. "I have to go," she said simply before she started to leave.

Hisao turned and watched her as she went. Just then, the door to the library opened...And Misaki stepped in.

The calming, kind expression he had seen on Misaki before dropped, only for a second. It became something of disdain, pure hatred as she gazed at Natsume. But when she looked over at Hisao, it returned, as though it had never happened...And he never even noticed.

"There you are, Natsume! I have your homework for you right he-" Misaki moved forward, extending the papers to Natsume, who suddenly struck her hand, sending the pages to the ground.

"Get away from me," Natsume growled. Misaki stood there, frozen, as Natsume limped her way past. When she left, Hisao simply stood there, dumbfounded.

"Do I even want to know what's wrong?" Hisao wasn't sure if he wanted to know or not.

"I...don't know. We used to be such good friends, then she suddenly started to hate me..." Tears started to swell up in her eyes, and she quickly wiped them away.

"Well, it could just be because of her condition acting up," Hisao told her, stepping forward and placing a hand on Misaki's shoulder gently for comfort. "Just uh, give her some time."

Misaki nodded and looked up at Hisao. "T-Thank you," she said. Looking over at the clock on the wall, Misaki said, "We have time...Will you take a walk with me, Hisao?"

_Of course, right when I wanted to try and get some work done, _Hisao thought. "Sure, I need the exercise anyways," he responded.

Forgetting the book he had picked out on the table, Hisao left the library with Misaki.

As they left, Natsume, who was hiding down the hall around the corner, watched them walk off side by side, tears coming to her eyes.

_Why?... Why does she do this?_

**To be continued...**

**Next Chapter – False Intention**

_**A/N: For those wondering, Suzu will get her own time to shine, I promise. I need to let every character get their story told. Just be patient!~**_


	3. False Intentions

**Chapter Three – False Intentions**

The next day, Misaki approached Hisao and asked him to have lunch with her.

"Uh, sure," he answered, standing and looking over at Suzu who was still sleeping. _I'm sure it'll be fine for today, _Hisao thought as he followed Misaki out the door.

However, for the rest of the week, Misaki continued to ask him, and he continued to accepted her offer. Suzu didn't seem to notice, so he figured that she didn't mind. However, on Friday, Natsume finally returned to the classroom, though she still had her crutches with her for a few more days.

When the lunch bell chimed, Hisao was going to head over and accompany Natsume to eat, but Misaki was faster and arrived at his desk before he could stand.

"Ready to go, Hisao?" She gave her usual calming smile, and Hisao glanced over at Natsume, who was looking at them over her shoulder.

"Yeah..." Hisao stood and followed Misaki out of the classroom.

Natsume sat there, frozen for a moment, until Suzu approached her. "Let's go," she said simply, as though she was unaware of what was happening.

"O-Okay," Natsume said, grabbing her crutches and following Suzu out.

* * *

Natsume and Suzu sat at the usual bench, though Natsume couldn't bring herself to eat anything.

"Something wrong?" Suzu didn't have any worry in her voice, because she was merely asking because Natsume hadn't eaten anything.

"Misaki...She's doing it again," Natsume said, staring down at her bento.

"I know," Suzu said simply, taking another bite of her pork, "It's hard not to notice."

Natsume turned to Suzu, confused. "Really?"

Suzu nodded. "They've eaten together every day this week, and she's left class with him before," she said, peering over at Natsume's bento, then snatching up one of her sushi rolls.

"Why...I don't understand why she has to take everything from me," Natsume said, clutching at her skirt.

Suzu paused her eating for a moment and glanced over at Natsume. "...So you're saying Hisao was yours to begin with," she said, taking a bite out of her rice ball.

Natsume instantly blushed and shook her head. "N-No, not at all," she said, waving her hand, "I mean, I..." She gave up and looked down at her lap, while a small grin crept up onto Suzu's face.

"We just have to see if Hisao can figure out himself," Suzu said, setting her chopsticks down onto her empty bento.

Natsume shook her head. "No...I want to tell him when he's alone, before anything happens," she said, reaching for her crutches and standing.

As she limped away, Suzu said after her, without much emotion, "Good luck."

* * *

Sunday came quickly, and Hisao was glad for it. He had planned on sleeping in til late, to help get his sleeping schedule back on track...

But a knock at his door woke him up early. He grabbed his watch from his desk and looked at the time. 6:43. _Who would be knocking on my door this early? _

Hisao stood groggily and rubbed his eyes, making his way over to his door. He opened it slightly and peered out. Standing there was Misaki, who was still wearing her black-silk night gown, just with a light jacket covering it.

"M-Misaki?" Hisao couldn't help but blush a bit seeing her like that.

"Hi Hisao," Misaki said with a smile, "Can I come in?"

Hisao nodded and opened the door. When Misaki stepped inside, he closed the door and watched as she moved her hand along his bed with a delicate movement of her hand, then sat and looked up at him.

"So, what did you come here for?" Hisao didn't want to assume, but having Misaki there like that, sitting on his bed...He didn't know what to think.

"I just wanted to...talk," Misaki said with a smile. She scooted over and allowed Hisao to sit beside her on the bed.

_Thud...Thud...Thud... _Hisao could hear his heart starting to beat harder in his chest, though it wasn't hurting yet.

"I wanted to thank you for talking to me and being my friend," Misaki told him, staring intently into his eyes. Hisao's instincts told him to look away, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. "It helps, especially since I was so hurt by Natsume..."

_Thud..Thud..Thud..._ His heartbeat continued to become a little louder with every passing moment. Eventually, Hisao had to look away and clutch his chest, allowing himself to calm.

"Hisao? Is something wrong?" Misaki gave him a worried look and moved closer to him, setting a hand on his shoulder.

"N-No, everything's...fine," he said, turning back to her. Their eyes locked again, and, after a few moments, Hisao reached forward and pulled Misaki's jacket off slowly, wanting to see her completely in her gown...

It was more revealing than Hisao had originally thought. From the chest down, her body could be made out through the semi-transparent fabric. Seeing that, Hisao flushed even more, and Misaki suddenly brought her head up and kissed him.

After a few moments, Misaki pushed Hisao back onto the bed and straddled him. As she kissed him, he placed his hands gently on her hips.

_How did it come to this, _Hisao thought as his tongue danced with Misaki's as they kissed. He led his hands up her body to her back...Where he felt something hard and metallic along her spine.

Moving his head to the side to see, Hisao could make out a metal pole-like object visible where Misaki's spine was. "What...is that?"

Misaki stopped and looked back. "It's just for my scoliosis," she told him, "It's nothing." Misaki smiled at him, and Hisao decided to leave it be. She moved back and delicately starting to move the traps to her shoulders teasingly...

As she let go, allowing the gown to slide down her body, a knock came at the door, and Hisao looked up at the door. "Just leave it," Misaki told him, but the person knocked again.

"S-Sorry, let me get it real quick," Hisao said, starting to get up. However, in a surprising move, Misaki grabbed his wrists and pushed him back down.

"No! It's not important," she repeated. He looked up at her, confused. The nice, innocent girl had vanished, and Misaki, obviously noticing, returned to her usual smile. "Okay?"

_Maybe this wasn't such a great idea, _Hisao thought, starting to get up again. However, Misaki pushed him back down again, more aggressively this time.

"Get off!" Hisao was getting a little peeved that she wasn't listening, and he sat up quickly, pushing Misaki off of him, though he accidentally made her fall off of the bed and hit the floor, landing on her back.

She sat there for a moment, obviously in pain from the hit. "I-I'm sorry," Hisao said, quickly getting up and kneeling beside her.

From the door, Natsume's voice said, "Hisao? Are you alright?"

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine," he said, panicking slightly. He quickly grabbed his school uniform and half put it on, going over to the door and opening it only slightly so she couldn't see in. "Sorry, I was changing," Hisao told her.

"That's a relief...I was afraid of waking you, but I thought this might be my only chance to talk," Natsume said with a sigh of relief.

Hisao glanced back at Misaki, who was on her knees, facing the bed, silent. "Alright...I'll be out when I'm done changing, alright?"

Natsume nodded, and he closed the door. Hisao buttoned up his uniform and slipped on his shoes. He then grabbed the jacket Misaki had been wearing before and gently placed it over her, hoping to see how she was doing, though she looked away from him.

"I-I'm sorry...You can probably slip out unnoticed, since it's early," Hisao told her before standing and leaving his room.

* * *

Hisao and Natsume made their way over to the school's courtyard. It was a nice, quiet morning, with a slightly chilled wind in still in the air from the night.

"This is kind of tired of my arms...Should we sit?" Natsume asked. Hisao nodded, and the two sat down on a bench. For a few moments, there was silence, and both watched the early-morning Sun rise over the school building.

Natsume was the first to break the silence. "You shouldn't trust Misaki..." Hisao looked over at her, and could tell that she was struggling as to what to say. "She just...wants to hurt me."

"Hurt you? How?" Hisao wasn't sure if there was more to the two girls than Misaki had told him.

"Well...four years ago, I hurt her, and she's been taking everything from me since then," Natsume explained, twiddling with her fingers on her lap, "All of my friends...It's why she's taken an interest in you, because you were helping me."

Natsume looked up and met Hisao's gaze. Her eyes were sorrowful, and he could tell... that she was telling the truth.

"Oh..." He didn't know what to say. She had no idea what events could have transpired had she not came to his door and stopped it. "What could have made her hate you that much?"

Natsume looked down at her lap. "I...broke her heart."

_Broke her heart? _"It was two years ago, during Summer break..."

"It started...with her confession."

**To be continued...**

**Next Chapter – Innocence Lost**


	4. Innocence Lost

_**A/N: Sorry for the long delay! I'm going to be updating this and Two Queens now, since I'm not really busy these days. Please Read, Review, and ENJOY!**_

_**ALSO: This first part of the chapter is from Natsume's POV, in case you get confused by POV changes.**_

**Chapter Four – Innocence Lost**

"Natsume?..."

"Yes, Misaki?"

"...Never mind."

I glanced down at the girl beside me, her head lying on my shoulder, then turned back to watch the Sun that was slowly sinking down below the horizon outside.

We were the only ones in the cabin of the train, and the only sounds being made were the soft, clanking sounds of the train's wheels and the gentle breathing of Misaki, who seemed to be slowly falling asleep.

It was the peaceful three-day weekend I had been looking forward to for a while. Misaki and I had planned to go and visit her grandmother in the country, where we could relax and not have to worry about the troubles of the city.

From the beginning of the train ride, I could tell that Misaki had something she really wanted to tell me. I had no clue what it could have been, but I decided to just let her think it over and ask me whenever she could.

By the time we had arrived at the train station, seemingly in the middle of nowhere, Misaki had fallen asleep. I gently pushed on her shoulder, and said, "Misaki? We're here..."

She slowly opened her eyes, and seemingly sprung to life, though she instantly held onto her back after doing so. When I moved in to help her, she smiled and told me, "I-It's fine, I just jumped up to quickly."

I nodded, relieved, and Misaki locked her arm with mine, leading me out onto the platform. Looking around, there were a few fields of crops and farm houses, and only a couple of other people were boarding the train from the station.

_I don't think I've ever been this far out into the country, _I thought as Misaki led me down a stone path going through the town, if you could really call a few houses a town.

At the end of the path was a fairly large two-story cottage. "Is this it?" I couldn't help but be surprised by how new it appeared compared to everything else.

Misaki giggled. "Yep, it was built recently by a few locals who appreciated her for all that she's done for them," she said as we stepped up to the front door.

"I hope I'm nice enough to people so they'll make me a place like this," I said as we entered, and we both smiled.

It was late when we had arrived, so Misaki's grandmother had started cooking. It smelled delicious, and the aroma instantly lead me to the kitchen when we walked into the cottage. Once in there, I noticed a young girl with pig-tails helping her grandmother cook. _Is that...her sister?_

"Oh, you're here," Misaki's grandmother said, turning and smiling at us. She gave Misaki a hug, and then, surprisingly to me, gave me a hug as well.

"This is Natsume. Natsume, this is my grandmother; everyone just calls her Grandma, even if they're not related," Misaki told me.

"It's nice to meet you," I said to her grandmother, who dipped her head to me.

"This is the first time I've gotten to meet one of Misaki's friends," her Grandma said with a smile. "Oh Ki, say hello to your sister!"

The little girl turned and seemed to give a cold look towards Misaki, before turning and continuing on with what she was doing. "S-So, grandma," Misaki said as if avoiding the topic, "How long until dinner is ready?"

"Oh, I don't know...Maybe half an hour?" Her grandmother looked at her watch and tapped her chin in thought. "Yes, that should be good."

Misaki nodded. "Okay. We're going to go and get changed, then we'll come back down," she said, motioning for me to follow her.

"I never knew you had a sister," I commented as we started to walk upstairs.

At first, I thought Misaki might continue to ignore the subject, but she said simply, "Well, she's really my step-sister. We... haven't talked much since what happened..."

_Oh...I see. _I decided to leave it at that, knowing the passing of her mother and father in their accident is probably not something I wanted to discuss, less it ruin the entire trip.

"Here we are," Misaki said. We had ended up at the entrance to the attic. "We'll have to share this room, because Grandma has loads of junk stored up in the others," she told me as she opened the door and stepped in. I nodded and followed her inside.

The attic room was like any other room, with two beds, a desk, and even a television, though it looked a little old. The room was dark though, and the only light coming in was the rather large, ovular window on the other side of the room.

"It feels like that train ride took forever," I commented, walking over to the nearest bed and dropping my bag beside it before laying back onto it.

Misaki sat on the bed and gave a big stretch. "I know...If I wasn't hungry, I'd prefer to just fall asleep right now." She laid back onto the bed beside me, and we stared up at the brown ceiling above.

"Natsume..." I turned my head towards Misaki, who seemed to have a nervous look on her face. "I-I wanted to tell you something...but I never knew how."

"What is it? You can tell me anything," I told her, placing my hand on her arm in reassurance...

But what came next was something I had not expected. In a sudden move, Misaki rolled over on top of me, straddling me and grabbing my hands. "M-Misaki?..." I looked up at her, and she looked down at me, silent, her breathing becoming heavy...

And I knew at that moment just what was going to happen. "I-I love you!"

Even though I knew the words were coming, it was still shocking when Misaki blurted them out. "M-Misaki, I..." I trailed off as tears entered Misaki's eyes.

"I just...I never knew how to say it. This is hard, it's really hard..." She wiped the tears from her eyes. "I wanted to go on this trip with you so I could be with you, alone, and I could tell you and show you just how much you mean to me..."

_Misaki... _The girl clasped her hands with mine and started to lean in close to me. "Natsume...D-do you...feel the same?"

…

…

"No..."

Misaki's eyes widened. "No, I... Misaki, I care about you, but I don't...I don't want to _be_ with you..." I felt nervous under Misaki's gaze. I lifted a hand and caressed her face gently. "I'm...sorry."

Misaki leaned back, quiet, her hair covering whatever emotion might be displayed on her face...

She slowly crawled off of me and I sat up. "Misaki, I...Don't let this get between us," I told her... But she seemed to be dead to the world.

"I'm sorry," Misaki said in a tear-jerked voice. She made her way to the other side of the room, and I placed my head in my hands, feeling bad about what had just happened.

_I don't want something like a relationship to get between us, _I thought. _I...I just don't._

"Misaki-" I turned around to see if she was alright...but what I saw was her sitting on the edge of the open window on the opposite side of the room, her feet dangling outside.

"MISAKI!" I jumped up and ran towards her.. She turned her head towards me, then closed her eyes and pushed herself off. I reached out for her, but there was no point...

She was gone.

* * *

"...After that, she had to get a metal rod surgically placed by her spine so that she could continue to move," Natsume said. "When I talked to her sister, she said that Natsume and her never gotten along because it was Misaki's fault their parents died..."

_Being blamed for something like that might make anyone crazy, _Hisao thought. "But how could it be her fault?"

Natsume shrugged. "Apparently her parents were on an errand or her when they got into their accident," she said. "I...I feel really bad for her, but she shouldn't have to hate everyone..."

It was obvious that Natsume was struggling not to let the tears flow. After all, it was the first time she had told anybody besides Suzu about what had happened.

"I-I'm sorry..." Hisao didn't know exactly what to say. "I had no way of knowing."

Natsume looked over at him and nodded. "I know...I don't blame you," she said.

Hisao glanced over at Natsume, and their eyes locked. A tear had slipped out of the corner of Natsume's eye and slowly glided down her face. Hisao reached forward and wiped the tear away instinctively, then realized what he had done and pulled his hand back, embarrassed.

"I-" He tried to make an excuse, but Natsume didn't let him. She leaned forward and gently put her lips against his. Hisao's face flushed at the softness of her lips upon his and allowed their hands to slowly entwine.

After a few moments, Natsume moved back, blushing intensely. She opened her mouth to say something, but another voice came from behind, "That was good."

Natsume looked behind her, and Hisao looked past her, seeing none-other than Suzu standing there, her usual uninterested face showing just a little perk of interest in what was going on.

"S-Suzu!" Natsume reddened even more and turned away, placing her free hand onto her face as if trying to hide herself.

"I-It's not what it looks like," Hisao said, though he knew it was of no use.

"Don't worry, I won't disturb you any longer," Suzu stated, walking past the two and glancing down at their hands that were still entwined together. They both let go and looked away from each other, which only amused Suzu further as she walked away.

"Suzu, wait up!" Natsume seemed eager to get away from Hisao at that moment, and she quickly grabbed her crutches and limped after her, while Hisao watched on with slight amusement.

Once they were gone, Hisao placed a finger against his lips.

_So... soft._

**To be continued...**

**Next Chapter – A Friend's Warmth**


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